Seamed joint for railway car roof sheets

ABSTRACT

A galvanized roof structure for application to a freight car by welding and having a plurality of roof sections joined by clinched seams formed by interlocking hook flanges. The seam is sealed by a suitable sealant. A method is disclosed wherein the sealant is applied prior to tightly clinching the seam.

United States Patent [191 Crutcher a June 11, 1974 SEAMED JOINT FOR RAILWAY CAR ROOF SHEETS [75] lnventor: Calvin Crutcher, l-lammond, lnd. [73] Assignee: Stanray Corporation, Chicago, lll.

[22] Filed: Jan. 16, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 324,160

52 us. on. ..52/45, 52/588 [51] Int. Cl Bold 17/12 [58] Field of Search 52/45, 53, 56, 588, 519, 52/529 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,412,283 l2/l946 O'Connor 52/56 2,5l3,054 6/1950 Rudel 52/53 3,075,802 l/l963 Lowe 52/588 3,408,779 1 H1968 Allen et al.

2/1972 lrvin 52/588 X Primary Examiner-Price C. Faw, Jr. Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Sabin C. Bronson [5 7] ABSTRACT A galvanized roof structure for application to a freight car by welding and having a plurality of roof sections joined by clinched seams formed by interlocking hook flanges. The seam is sealed by a suitable sealant.

A method is disclosed wherein the sealant is applied prior to tightly clinching the seam.

3 Claims, 17 Drawing Figures PAIENTEBJUM 1 m 3.815296 SHEET 38$ 4 alelslzse PATENTEDJum I I974 SHEEI t Of 4 BACKGROUND SUMMARY DRAWINGS The present invention relates to railway vehicles and more particularly to a new and improved roof structure for railway'vehicles of the box car type, and to the method for making the roof.

Currently it is becoming common practice to weld the car roof to the side plates of the car. This is easily accomplished when ungalvanized sheet steel is used for making the roof. Generally the ungalvanized roof is shipped in sections to the carbuilder. The carbuilder then applies the roof sections to the car, welding the sections together with a lap weld and welding the sections to the side plates.

Many carbuilders desire that galvanized'sheets be used for the roof in order to provide corrosion resistance. However, galvanized steel is extremely difficult to weld. The weld also tends to break down the galvanizing atthe weld location so that the corrosion problem is prevalent along this line.

The weld may be improved by the use of silicone bronze weld rod. This rod requires less heat than the normal steel weld rod so that the break down of the galvanizing is minimized.

TI-Ie silicone bronze rod is also quite expensive and raises the cost of the roof, if the rod is used as continuous weld along the seam sections. The use of bronze silicone rods results in the release of toxic and noxious fumes. This condition requires that the site at which the welding is performed be adequately ventilated. This also increases the cost of the roof structure.

By the present invention it is proposed to provide a new and improved roof structure and method for forming the same which overcomes the difficulties encountered heretofore. r

This is accomplished generally by providing a roof structure vcomprising a plurality of sheet sections in side-by-side relation, an adjacent edge portion of one of the sheet sections is bent into a downwardly and inwardly projecting hook flange while the opposite edge portion on the other of the adjacent sheets is bent into an upwardly and outwardly projecting hook flange. The upwardly extending hook flange, and the downwardly extending hook flange are clinchingly interlocked. The hook flanges are each cut-away at thesopposite ends thereof so that two sheets are in face-to-face engagement. A weld is then applied along the ends of the sheet at the seam for permanently attaching the sheets together. To minimize leakage at the clinched seam a sealant is applied therealong up to the longitudinal edges of the seam. The assembled roof sections may then be applied to the side plates of the car by welding to said-side plates along the longitudinal edges.

In forming the roof, the hook flanges are initially loosely interlocked. Thereafter the weld is made along the notches and the sealant is applied along the entire length of the seam between the longitudinal edges of the sheet. Thereafter the hooked flanges are tightly pressed together to form a tightly clinched seam.

In another form of the invention the hooked flanges may be interrupted along the length thereof. The downwardly extending hook flange is cut-away so that the horizontal extent thereof overlies the cut away section of the upwardlyextending flange. The cut-away section of the downwardly extending flange is formed with a form of seam.

U-shaped notch along which a weld is applied to secure the sheets together. A sealant is applied between the notches along the longitudinal edges to the opposite sides of the U-shaped notch.

The modified structure is formed in substantially the same manner as the first embodiment. The welds are made along the longitudinal edges of the sheet and the intermediate notch and the sealant is applied. Thereafter the hooked flanges are pressed together in tightly clinched engagement. I

In a modified form of the invention the clinched seam may be bent along the length thereof into a crown. This is advantageous because in the event that the sealant fails, any water which may be present on the roof does not flow upwardly into the crown. Thus leakage through the seam is minimized.

In another form of the invention the hook flanges at the longitudinal ends of the seams are terminated a pre determined distance from the longitudinal edges of the roof. The upper one of the face-to-face and adjoining sheets may be formed with an open ended notch along each of the longitudinal edges. The weld is then applied along the edges of the notch to fasten the sheets.

In another form the ends of the hook flanges are'cut in opposite'diagonal directions. The weld is applied along the notched edge to fasten the upper sheet to the lower sheet at the lapped ends of the sheets, when the sheet is assembled on the vehicle with which it is to be used.

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of an edge por tion of a roof structure embodying one form of me chanical seam for joining roof sheets according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary'view of a blank of one roof section. I

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view of a completed roof structure after formation of the hooked flanges along the opposite transverse edges thereof and the. formation of the beads. 7

FIG. 5 is an enlarged end view taken generally along the lines S--5 of FIG. 4. I

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken generally along the lines 66 of FIG. 4. V

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view taken generally along the lines 7-7 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary cross sectional view showing the manner in which the roof is attached to the side plates of the vehicle.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary top plan view of a tie or fastening arrangement which may be used intermediate the length of the seam.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary front elevational view of the seam shown in FIG. 9 prior to completion of the seam.

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary front elevational view similar to FIG. 10 but showing the seam tightly clinched.

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary top plan view of a modified FIG. 13 is a cross sectional view of the seam ofFlG.

} l2 taken generally along the lines 13-13 thereof.

FIG. 14 is a cross sectional view taken generally along the lines 14-.l4 of FIG. 12.

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary top plan view of still another embodiment of a mechanical seam.

FIG. 16 is fragmentary end view of the seam of FIG. 15.

FIG. 17 is a cross sectional view taken generally along the lines 1717 of FIG. 15.

Referring now to the drawings there is shown a roof sheet 10 adapted to be applied to a freight vehicle. The roof sheets 10 are assembled in overlapping end-to-end relationship and then fixed as by welding to the side plates of the railway vehicle as shown in FIG. 8. The roof sheet is preferably made from steel plate which has been galvanized.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 the sheets 10 are each of generally rectangular contour and formed with merging notches 11 and 12 along the corners on one of the lateral edges andwith notches 13 at the corners along the opposite lateral'edge. The vertical edges 14 and 15 of the respective notches 12 and 13 define marginal edge portions 16 and 17 along the transverse edges of the sheet 10.

The marginal edge portions 16 and 17 are bent about a line extending between the vertical edges of the corners 12 and 13 to form hook flanges 18 and 19, respectively. It is to be noted thatthe hook flanges 18 and 19 are bent in opposite directions. As shown in FIG. 7 the hook flange 18 is bent downwardly and inwardly while the hook flange 19 is bent upwardly and inwardly. At

'the same time the end marginal edge portion 20, ex-

tending between the longitudinal edge 22 of the hook flange 18 at each corner is also depressed downwardly out of the plane of the remainder of the sheet 10 as shown in FIGS. 1, and 6. It is to be noted that the end marginal portions 29 are depressed to about the same plane as the free edge of the hook flange 18.

During the formation of the hook flanges 18 and 19 the roof sheet may also be formed with transversely extending beads 23 adjacent each of the hook flanges 18 and 19 and with a generally X-shaped bead 24 intermediate the beads 23.

The required number of sheets to form the desired length of roof are then assembled. The roof sheets are initially loosely assembled with the hook flanges 18 and 19 of adjacent sheets interlocked. When thus interlocked the depressed portions 21) at the corners of the hook flange lie in face-to-face engagement with the underlying panel.

A sealant 25 is then applied along the exterior folded edges of the hook flange 18 and the adjacent roof panel surface to form a water tight seal. A suitable sealant which has good flexibility upon curing is polyurethane, a butyl rubber type of sealant. The flexibility of the sealant upon curing is necessary so that the seam remains water tight during the flexing of the roof and car body.

A weld is then applied along the longitudinal edge 26 and transverse edge 27 of the notches, thereby to permanently fasten the overlapping portions of the panels to each other. It is to be noted that the welds terminate short of the interlocked hook flange 18 and the sealant 25. This prevents the weld from burning the sealant and minimizes the likelihood of leaking at the seam.

Thereafter the assembled roof sheets 10 are inserted into a press to tightly clinch the interlocked hook flanges 18 and 19 as shown in FIG. 2. When tightly clinched the seam 29 lies substantially flat as shown with the panels 10, extending from either side thereof, lying substantially in the same plane.

If desired the seam 29 may also be crowned to provide a pair of sloping sides similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 13, as more fully to be described hereinafter.

The fully assembled roof 15, comprising a plurality of mechanically seamed panels is then ready for installation to the side plates of a railway car body. As shown in FIG. 8 the panels or sheets 10 are welded along the longitudinal edge to the side plate 30.

In some car applications wherein excessive vibrations may be encountered during the railway vehicle operation the seam 29 may tend to open. To prevent such occurrences the seam 29 may be provided with an intermediate tie arrangement 30 as shown in FIGS. 9, 10 and 11. I

The intermediate tie arrangement 30 is formed by cutting or removing a section 310 of the hook flange 19 so that only the underlying portion 31 of the panel is present. The hook flange 18 is similarly formed with a cut-away 32a so that an overlying portion 32 remains. The overlying portion 32 is formed with a U-shaped notch 33. The overlying portion 32 is bent downwardly so that the notch 33 is in engagement with the underlying portion 31 when the hooked flanges l8 and 19 are loosely interlocked as explained heretofore. The sealant 25 is applied along the curled edge of the hook flange 18 and along the underlying portion 31 to the opposite sides of the notch 33. The weld is applied along the edge of the notch 33 to fasten the overlying portion 32 to the underlying panel portion 31. Again it is to be noted that the weld is applied in a manner that it does not burn the sealant 25. Thereafter the seam is tightly clinched so that the intermediate portion 30 assumes the condition shown in FIG. 11.

Referring now to FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 there is shown another embodiment of a seam 40 for joining roof sections 41 together along their transverse edges. The seam 40 is essentially the same as that shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-8. An upwardly turned hook flange 42 is formed along the transverse edge of the right sheet as seen in FIGS. 12-14, and a downwardly turned hook flange 43 is formed on the transverse edge of the left sheet. The hook flanges extend for substantially the full length of the transverse edges. However, adjacent the ends along the longitudinal edges of the sheet 41, the hooks or flanges 44 and 45 of the hook flanges 42 and 43, respectively, are cut-away diagonally as shown at 46 and 47 in FIG. 12. Thus the seam when flattened and tightly clinched results in a portion of the hook flange 43 designated by the reference character 48 lying flush with the underlying. right sheet 41 as viewed in FIG. 14. Thus no welding is necessary since the edge 49 of the hooked flange 43 lies along the longitudinal edge of the right sheet 41 as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14.

The sealant 25 is applied in the same manner along the mating surfaces of the sheet 41 with the downwardly and inwardly hook flange 43. Thereafter the seam is tightly pressed together into either a crowned seam as shown in FIGS. 12-14 or a flat seam 40a as shown in FIGS. 15-17. The crowned seam 40 includes a crown or peak 51 with a pair of oppositely sloping sides 5252. The sloping sides 5252 form a convenient water run-off and minimize the likelihood of leakage through the sealed area.

The seam of the embodiment of FIGS. 15-17 is generally similar to the embodiment of FIGS. 12-14, differing generally only in the fact that the seam is maintained or pressed flat. Both of the structures of the em bodiments of FIGS. 12-14 and FIGS. 15-17 are applied to the side plates of a railway vehicle in the same manner as by welding.

What is claimed is:

1. A roof assembly for welded application to a-railway vehicle comprising a pair of generally rectangular roof sheets in end-to-end relationship, one of said roof sheets having a downwardly and inwardly turned first hook flange along one transverse edge, and the other of said sheets having an upwardly and inwardly turned second hook flange along the transverse edge, said first and second hook flanges being interlocked and tightly clinched together, and flexible sealant along the mating surfaces of said downwardly turned flanges and the underlying roof panel to seal seams, said hook flanges being cut-away adjacent the longitudinal edges at the transverse edge so that the sheets are in substantially face-to-face engagement with each other at the ends of said seams.

2. The roof assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said first and second hook flanges are formed with sections cut-away intermediate the ends of said seam, and wherein said cutaway section of said first hook flange is formed with a notch and said section containing said notch is disposed in engagement with said cut-away notch to fix the sheets together. 

1. A roof assembly for welded application to a railway vehicle comprising a pair of generally rectangular roof sheets in end-toend relationship, one of said roof sheets having a downwardly and inwardly turned first hook flange along one transverse edge, and the other of said sheets having an upwardly and inwardly turned second hook flange along the transverse edge, said first and second hook flanges being interlocked and tightly clinched together, and flexible sealant along the mating surfaces of said downwardly turned flanges and the underlying roof panel to seal seams, said hook flanges being cut-away adjacent the longitudinal edges at the transverse edge so that the sheets are in substantially face-to-face engagement with each other at the ends of said seams.
 2. The roof assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said first and second hook flanges are formed with sections cut-away intermediate the ends of said seam, and wherein said cut-away section of said first hook flange is formed with a notch and said section containing said notch is disposed in engagement with said cut-away section of said second hook flange, and a weld is applied along the edge of said notch to permanently attach said sheets intermediate the length of the seam.
 3. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said first hook flange is formed with a notch along longitudinal edges, and a weld is applied along the edges of said notch to fix the sheets together. 